Bee is one of a group of words that translates to “with or by means of (it).” Using it takes some practice, but it’s essential knowledge. Here’s an overview.

For reference: Shee would mean “with me”, nee means “with you”, and bee takes its place in the third person “with him/her/it”. These words follow special rules that makes bee (or yee – the other 3rd person form) relatively common.

In English grammar, the word ‘with‘ is called a preposition. Prepositions usually come before nouns (people, places or things). For example: “Cook eggs with butter.”

In Navajo, however, these words are postpositions. They follow the noun. Rearranging the earlier example to fit Navajo sentence structure: “Eggs butter with cook,” or “Butter with eggs cook.”

Tip: One of the best ways to get a hold of Navajo is to practice rearranging sentences in your mind. You can get started by putting the verb at the end, taking note of the point of view and tense. (ex. “I run,” “she cooked,” “they talk,” “you read,” are one word in Navajo).

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